Second Chechen War

The Second Chechen War was fought from 26 August 1999 to 15 April 2009 between the Russian Federation and the separatist Chechen Republic of Ichkeria in Chechnya and the border regions of the North Caucasus. The war resulted in the establishment of a pro-Russian Chechen government which returned the war-plagued country to being a Russian federal subject, but it also led to the Insurgency in the North Caucasus.

Background
On 9 August 1999, Islamist fighters from Chechnya entered Russia's Dagestan region, declaring it an independent state and calling for a jihad until all unbelievers could be driven out. In response to the War of Dagestan and the Russian apartment bombings (which killed 300 people, possibly caused by the FSB in order to renew public support for war with Chechnya), Russia resumed its war against the separatist Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, backed by pro-Russian paramilitary forces.

War
On 1 October 2000, Russian troops entered Chechnya, and Russian military and pro-Russian Chechen paramilitary forces faced Chechen separatists in open combat. From late 1999 to February 2000, the Russians seized the Chechen capital of Grozny after a winter siege, causing many casualties and forcing 200,000 civilians to flee, with the vast majority of them fleeing to Ingushetia. In May 2000, Russia established direct rule of Chechnya, but, after the full-scale offensive, Chechen militant resistance throughout the North Caucasus region continued to inflict heavy Russian casualties and challenge Russian political control over Chechnya for several more years. In response, Chechens seized hostages in a Moscow theatre and engaged in a guerrilla war against the Russians and the Chechen government, and, in 2003, a new constitution was agreed upon, giving Chechnya greater autonomy within Russia and installing pro-Russian president Akhmad Kadyrov in power. In the summer of 2003, Russia turned over coordination of the field operations to the FSB and then to the Ministry of Internal Affairs. By 2009, Russia had severely disabled the Chechen separatist movement, and large-scale fighting ceased. Russian army and interior ministry troops no longer occupied the streets, and Grozny underwent reconstruction efforts, with much of the city and the surrounding areas being rebuilt quickly. Sporadic violence continued throughout the North Caucasus, but occasional bombings and ambushes targeting federal and regional troops still continued during the Insurgency in the North Caucasus. On 15 April 2009, the government operation in Chechnya officially came to a close, and, on 1 August 2009, the exiled separatist leader Akhmed Zakayev called for a halt to armed resistance against the Chechen police force and hoped for a day when Chechens would stop shooting each other. Up to 7,425 (or even 14,000) Russian and Chechen government soldiers were killed, 16,299 separatists were killed, and between 30,000 and 250,000 civilians died, with the total death toll ranging from 50,000 to 250,000.